Ecological zoning management of Fenhe River Basin based on the ecosystem "structure-form-function" framework

Area of Science:

• Ecological sustainability science
• Landscape ecology
• Environmental management

Background:

• The Fenhe River Basin, a vital semi-arid ecological zone in the Yellow River Basin, faces significant social-ecological changes.
• These changes lead to ecosystem fragmentation and functional degradation, necessitating urgent research into structure-form-function (SFF) coupling mechanisms for effective restoration.
• Existing restoration efforts are hindered by a lack of understanding of these complex interactions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantify the coupling mechanisms of ecosystem structure-form-function (SFF) in the Fenhe River Basin.
• To analyze the degradation characteristics and driving forces of ecosystem services (ESs) from 2000 to 2020.
• To propose differentiated management strategies based on identified ecological zones and driving mechanisms.

Main Methods:

• Complex network analysis to understand system interdependencies.
• Mediation effect testing to identify causal pathways.
• Multi-scale geographically weighted regression (MGWR) to analyze spatial variations in driving factors.

Main Results:

• Ecosystem services (ESs) show degradation in the central basin with fluctuations at edges.
• Habitat quality and soil conservation/water yield exhibit trade-offs, while water yield and soil conservation show mixed trade-offs and synergies across regions.
• Driving mechanisms shifted from natural dominance to human influence and synergistic driving, with key factors evolving from elevation to cropland and edge density.

Conclusions:

• The study identified six distinct ecological zones requiring tailored management strategies.
• A novel three-level policy loop (driver identification-regulation-feedback) enhances landscape sustainability science.
• Findings offer pathways for semi-arid basins to adopt collaborative SFF governance for improved ecological resilience.